Joe DeFranco's Industrial Strength Show

Are you always sore? Before you buy another recovery gadget, you might wanna take a closer look at your TRAINING! On this week's show, Joe answers four listener questions: His top three recovery priorities for lifters over 40—and why your PROGRAM could be the reason you're always sore. The one muscle nobody checks for low back pain Food QUALITY vs. calorie counting: Why Joe doesn't always start ov...

What would Joe DeFranco do if he woke up tomorrow, looked in the mirror, and "Bloated Joe D" was staring back at him?! In this episode, Joe answers a listener's hypothetical question by revealing the first 5 things he'd do to get his lean physique back—at age 51. Before outlining his plan, Joe shares the lessons learned from two very different transformations: his first diet at 21, which got him t...

In this week's episode, Joe answers four listener questions covering smarter training, career growth, and better breathing. He explains why he never programs forced reps—including an overlooked problem—and shares his take on Squatober after the age of 40. Can you embrace the challenge without burying your recovery? Joe also reveals the best question a former intern ever asked him and explains how...

Joe takes a break from the typical training Q&A for a fun, unique episode featuring 10 totally random listener questions! He opens up about his recent skin cancer scare and weighs in on the controversial HYROX incident in Beijing: Was continuing the race a display of grit—or disrespect?  Other topics include Nicolas Cage playing John Madden, getting help on the first rep of heavy dumbbell bench pr...

"Muscle confusion" is complete bullsh*t. So why did Joe D. and Smitty name their new program "Mass Confusion?" In this episode, they explain the difference between random workouts and planned variation—and give you a look behind the scenes at how they built one cohesive 12-week program from three different training splits. They break down all three phases: an Upper/Lower split that uses a "reverse...

This week, Joe welcomes coach Kevin Carr to the Industrial Strength Show! Kevin is the co-founder of the Certified Functional Strength Coach certification and "Movement as Medicine" Massage & Movement Therapy Clinic. He has nearly 20 years of coaching experience, working with everyone from Olympic athletes to average Joes. In this episode, Joe and Kevin cut through the confusing fitness advice onl...

In this episode, Joe breaks down his tried-and-true principles for in-season strength training. He discusses Charlie Francis' famous "Fill the Glass" concept, reveals the two biggest in-season training mistakes he sees coaches and athletes make, and then takes you inside the exact program he's using with his daughter during her high school soccer season.  Joe shares her complete full-body strength...

This week, Joe explains why strength training should be viewed as a "retirement plan for your body" and breaks down the "Strength Training Snowball Effect" — eight positive adaptations that build upon each other to help you become stronger, healthier, leaner, and more capable as you age. He also reveals one of the most overlooked tools in the average person's training — long-duration isometric hol...

Has full range of motion training gone too far? This week, Joe questions whether the fitness industry pendulum has swung too far — from half reps and poor mobility to forcing extreme ranges of motion that we don't actually have the strength or control to own. He explains the difference between accessing a position and actually owning it, why more range of motion isn't always better, and how to saf...

In this episode, Joe exposes what he considers one of the fitness industry's biggest coaching scams: influencers who train a celebrity or pro athlete ONE TIME, film the workout, snap a picture — and then portray themselves as their "coach." Joe explains why "putting someone through a workout" and actually COACHING them are two completely different things. From long-term programming and problem-sol...

In this week's Q&A episode, Joe answers three listener questions covering sport-specific strength training, how to train someone who hates working out, and the ultimate push-up progression.  Joe explains why strength training shouldn't look like your sport, shares his approach for creating the perfect workout for someone who has anxiety around training (or simply hates the gym), and breaks down hi...

It took Joe six months to create a program that only lasts nine weeks. In this episode, he explains why. Joe pulls back the curtain on the creation of  Lean Bastard , sharing the behind-the-scenes decisions, setbacks, rewrites, and coaching philosophy that turned this project into a six-month obsession. From scrapping an entire finished program and starting over, to explaining why he chose full-bo...

Joe is back from vacation and he's got a lot of catching up to do...but he's only got an hour to do it! He kicks off this fast-paced "return episode" with a vacation recap and a Lean Bastard update before diving into today's main topic: The 5 Blood Markers That Every Lifter Needs To Understand.  If you lift weights regularly, certain blood markers can become temporarily elevated after a hard worko...

After receiving many requests, Joe finally opens the garage doors and gives listeners a complete rundown of the equipment in his home gym. But this isn't just another garage gym tour…  In this episode, Joe rates every major piece of equipment in his gym - from his EliteFTS Collegiate Half Rack and Freemotion Dual Cable Cross to his Technogym BioStrength Chest Press, Arsenal Reloaded Incline Fly, E...

After training in his 100-degree garage gym for weeks, Joe decided to do something he hadn't done in over 25 years — join a commercial gym. What happened next completely caught him off guard.  In this episode, Joe shares how one air-conditioned workout turned into an accidental self-experiment that changed the way he thinks about heat acclimation, conditioning, and recovery. He explains the scienc...

A longtime listener recently dug through his collection of Joe's old Ask Joe Q&A's, T Nation articles, and EliteFTS posts from over 20 years ago… and he challenged Joe to critique his own advice!  In this episode, Joe revisits five classic topics - including box squats, vertical jump training, free weights vs. machines, strength vs. hypertrophy principles, and full-body training splits - to answer...

In this episode, Joe D. explains why one of the most common warm-up mistakes is actually making lifters weaker before their work sets even begin. He shares a smarter approach to programming warm-up sets for better strength, more muscle, and improved performance -- while revealing the exact warm-up progression he used before hitting a recent PR with the 100-pound dumbbells.  Joe then breaks down th...

This week, Joe celebrates his 51st birthday by sharing 15 lessons, principles, and beliefs that have stood the test of time throughout his life and 30-year coaching career. In this episode, Joe discusses why strength training is the closest thing we have to a fountain of youth, why most people need less intensity and more consistency, why joint-friendly training IS performance training, the import...

We've all been there… You slept like crap, you're exhausted, and you've got a workout scheduled. So what should you do? Skip the workout? Push through as planned? Or modify it? In this episode, Joe answers a listener question regarding the best way to train when sleep-deprived. Specifically, should you reduce volume or intensity when recovery is compromised? Along the way, Joe discusses why relyin...

What if you could get 30 years of coaching experience condensed into one training tip per body part? This week, Joe takes on a unique challenge from a listener: Give the single BEST piece of training advice for every major muscle group - Chest, Back, Traps, Shoulders, Triceps, Biceps, Quads, Hamstrings, Glutes, Calves and Abs - in just 2-3 minutes per category. No overthinking. No research papers....

On this week's episode Joe & Smitty introduce the world to Derek Medeiros, aka, this year's SB911 GRAND CHAMPION! Highlights from this conversation include: Derek's mindset going into the SB911 Transformation Contest; How losing both of his parents affected Derek's life and his approach to fitness; The hardest part of the 12-week transformation challenge; What kept Derek going when motivation disa...

On this week's show a listener asks Joe to review a workout that his son got from a popular "fitness influencer"...and Joe does NOT hold back with his critique! After dismantling the program, Joe fixes it and then explains how to spot a program written by a true PRO versus a gym BRO. *For a full list of Show Notes w/ Timestamps visit  www. IndustrialStrengthShow.com . IMPORTANT LINKS Lean Bastard...

On this week's show Joe covers 4 topics: 1) How to kill your nighttime cravings WITHOUT killing your gains (Joe shares 4 of his favorite high protein, easy-to-prepare bedtime snacks that'll get ya jacked!) 2) How to train your lateral delts, biceps and triceps with just your BODY WEIGHT! 3) What's Joe currently training for? (The answer might surprise you LOL!) 4) The single most UNDERRATED set/re...

Joe kicks off this week's show with 3 big announcements regarding the  Iron Business Blueprint , this month's  "MuscleUp" supplement sale  &  NEW MERCH!  He then answers 3 listener questions. Specific topics include: 1) Cardio vs Weights for Fat Loss 2) The best way to develop visible abs 3) The difference between "training to failure" vs "0 RIR"... And MORE! *For a full list of Show Notes + Times...

On this week's show Joe D. & Chris Tutela shatter some of the most common myths & misconceptions surrounding gym ownership. More specifically: 1) You can't scale without compromising your programming/results 2) You must choose between "high quality" or "high volume" - You can't have both 3) If you raise your prices, you'll lose clients 4) More leads equals more money and success 5) Newbies can't t...